Beauty and the Monster
by KitsuneButterfly
Summary: Beauty and the Beast tale involving Alucard and Integra.
1. Chapter 1

As a lover of Beauty and the Beast tales, and one who is currently obsessed with Hellsing, I decided to combine the two. Probably not the first of its kind, but I felt like giving it a go. I apologize for any OOC-ness. Sometimes it's hard to keep characters IC when throwing them into an environment much different from their cannon one.

I don't think this classifies as a crossover, exactly, because I'm not mixing it with any known BatB tales. I'm just using the basic storyline of BatB (girl meets monster, slowly forms relationship with monster, yada yada...).

That said, I don't own Hellsing or any of the various Beauty and the Beast tales.

* * *

Mist swirled about his horse's legs as Arthur Van Helsing made his way through the dark and dreary forest. He had lost the road long ago when some manner of wild beast had frightened his horse, causing the usually-calm animal to bolt in fright. His horse had plunged into the forest and many times Arthur had nearly been unseated by branches that snagged on his clothing. One even nearly took his head off. Only recently had the mare quieted, though she was still wary.

There was no way Arthur was going to make it home within a timely manner at this rate—if he even made it home at all, but he didn't want to think about that. All he had to do was find a structure to sleep in for the night. Hopefully the light of day would penetrate this dark forest and a path would be found that would lead him home. Or he could ask directions at whatever structure he found, providing that it was not abandoned.

At the sound of a twig snapping behind him, Arthur turned, only to see trees in the swirling mist. No one was there. Perhaps it was just his imagination playing up a bit. Yes, that was it…

The leaves on the forest floor rustled to his right. Once again, Arthur turned toward the source of the noise. Nothing was there. His horse began to back up slowly and her eyes rolled in fright. So something was near…

Once more, Arthur head something move. Before he could react, he found himself no longer on a horse and showered in blood.

"Pity. I missed," came a voice from directly in front of Arthur. Startled, Arthur looked up and beheld an extremely tall man with dark hair and glowing red eyes. This man was holding bits and pieces of Arthur's horse and blood dripped down the sides of his mouth.

Arthur's wits failed him and he could only stutter at the sight. This man—no, this monster—was unlike anything he had encountered before.

As the monster advanced upon him, Arthur managed to choke out a plea. "Please!" he cried, "Don't kill me! I'll do anything you wish me to."

"Anything?" inquired the monster, his voice an evil purr. He wondered what the man had to offer. Hopefully it was something good and worthy of sparing the man. His blood didn't smell all that appetizing, but the monster was hungry and horse blood was disgusting.

"Anything!" cried Arthur.

"You have a daughter," said the monster. This was not a question, but a statement. "Bring her to me. My castle is lonely; a girl would be a wonderful thing to have around."

"B-but," started Arthur.

"You said anything," said the monster with a shrug.

"You won't eat her, will you?"

The monster pondered this for a moment. "Perhaps. If she can make herself useful, I won't eat her."

Arthur said nothing, staring at the monster and processing what he had said.

"I'm feeling generous and I would like to have my girl here before winter. I will provide you with a mount who will both see you safely to your home and ensure that I get what is now mine." The monster held out his hand and snapped his fingers, and almost instantly, a dark, scruffy horse appeared out of the gloom. Its eyes almost matched its owner's in its odd red shade. "Baskerville, you know what to do," he said, addressing the horse.

With a snort that the monster took to mean that the horse understood, the horse trotted up to its to-be passenger and prodded Arthur with a hoof.

Removed from his thoughts by the horse poking him in the shin, Arthur stood and mounted the horse. As soon as he was settled, the horse took off into the night.

As the horse carried Arthur away from the scene, the monster turned to leave, but not before he had smiled an insane and toothy smile at the sky. "It's been so very long… I wonder how this new development will work out?" With that, the monster was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Who would have thought that I'd update this story, ne? Well, my roommate and I watched the new remastered Beauty and the Beast a few nights ago and I got inspired.

(Insert "I don't know Beauty and the Beast/Hellsing" disclaimer here.)

So, yes. Enjoy!

* * *

When Arthur arrived at his London home, he found his daughter casually sipping tea and reading a book, unaware of her fate. Arthur's daughter, a tall woman in her early twenties by the name of Integral, was beautiful by some standards – she had long pale blond hair and blue eyes that matched her father's and lightly tanned skin, a product of her deceased mother's heritage. Despite this, she had never married, though it was customary for women her age to have been married already. Most likely it had something to do with the fact that she was an educated, opinionated, and independent woman. She often made it a point to reject suitors she disliked, much to her father's dismay.

"Ah, father," said Integral as her father entered the sitting room. She uncurled herself from her position in the chair and set her book down next to her tea on the side table. "You're back later than expected. What kept you?" she inquired.

"Integral," started her father after a pause to collect his thoughts. "I met the devil on the road as I journeyed home."

Integral stared at her father. "Are you mad?" she asked.

Arthur shook his head. "I made a bargain with him for my life," he said sadly. "You must go to him."

"How could you agree to that?" exclaimed Integral angrily.

"He left me no choice," said her father. "A horse awaits you outside; you must leave soon, or I fear he will come and hunt down the both of us."

Sighing, Integral stood. She accepted her fate. "Very well. I'll pack my things and be back in a bit."

True to her word, it only took Integral a few minutes to pack her bags. She traveled light; most of the weight in her bags was books. As she mounted the midnight black horse, her father strapped her bags to the saddle.

"I'm sorry," he said as he stepped back from the horse.

The minute he was clear, the horse set off at a breakneck pace that nearly unseated Integral. The horse continued at that speed for hours, far beyond what any normal horse was capable of, causing Integral to wonder if the horse was of the devil as well.

Rarely did the horse stop; however, it seemed to know when Integral needed off to stretch her legs, eat, or sleep. It would slow to a stop and allow her off, but it would always watch her closely, as if it expected her to run away given the chance.

It made her wonder which of them was the animal, sometimes.

In shorter of a span of time than Integral thought possible, but plausible given their pace, she and the horse reached a very large and very old castle. Despite its age, however, it was in fairly good condition. While the walls showed a few obvious signs of age, none were crumbling. The castle was not in disrepair, but it was not well-kept, either.

The horse slowed to a walk as it entered the gates and made its way through the courtyard.

Integral took in the view of overgrown grass, weeds, and vines. The devil was obviously not a gardener.

As they reached the door to the castle, it swung open and the horse trotted right in. While Integral found this strange, she made no comment. Once the horse stopped, she dismounted and removed her bags. She was glad there was a bit of sunlight left streaming through tall windows in the entry hall for her to see by.

For a moment, she turned from the horse to admire the hall. For a castle that looked neglected on the outside, it was quite nice on the inside. Much more well-kept than the courtyard – the floors and rugs were clean, tapestries hung on the walls, and the furniture, while outdated, was not in any disrepair.

When she turned back, the horse was gone. She was alone with her things in the devil's castle. For some reason, this didn't concern Integral as much as it should have.

Leaving her things in the entry hall, Integral set off to explore.


	3. Chapter 3

So, I wrote this at 9 AM during my Bible class. It might suck a little bit, because I don't do anything with any semblance of competency in the morning.

(Insert "I don't own..." disclaimer here.)

* * *

During her explorations, Integral found a few things that intrigued her greatly. One was that a part of the castle was sealed away behind locked doors – the dungeons and the west wing that was built above them. Another was that she had her own room. There was a plaque on the door that read 'Integral' and while she had been exploring, apparently someone had moved her things, for they were sitting in her room when she looked. _The servants must be very quiet and efficient_, she thought to herself, because how else would she not have noticed her things being moved? The third interesting thing was the library. It was a large room filled to the brim with books of all shapes and sizes.

It was in the library that she stayed for quite some time. As the sun began to set, she lit some of the lamps in the library so that she could continue reading. So absorbed in her books, she failed to notice as night set upon the castle and with it came a particularly handsome man. His hair, dark as Integral's was fair, fell unevenly around his face, reaching to his shoulders at the longest. He was taller than most men and had odd red eyes that stood out starkly against pale skin. The man was dressed in a fashionable dark suit accompanied by a red cravat tied at his throat and riding boots upon his feet.

"You must be Integral," he said, pulling Integral's concentration away from her books and onto himself.

"And you are?" she inquired, peering at him over her book.

He chuckled darkly. "You may call me Alucard. I am the lord of this castle."

"Does that mean that you're the devil my father met on the road home?"

"The same," said Alucard. "Would you like to accompany me to dinner?"

_Honest and well-mannered_, thought Integral. _What sort of devil is this?_ "Of course," she said. "I am getting hungry." She set her book down and stood, taking the arm he offered, as was customary for a well-bred lady like Integral.

Alucard led Integral to the dining hall she had found earlier. While the table within had been bare before, there was now a decent selection of food spread across it. Alucard showed her to a chair and seated himself across from her.

"Eat," he said, "Anything you like, there is more than enough food."

With a 'thank you', Integral helped herself to the food. While she did so, Alucard proceeded to stare at her, a thoughtful look on his face.

"You do realize you're staring?" said Integral, locking eyes with Alucard.

Instead of replying, Alucard simply threw back his head and laughed.

Integral sighed and continued eating. Just as she was finishing her meal, a short woman with spiky blond hair entered and began to clear the table.

"Ah, Seras," said Alucard. He then turned to Integral. "Integral, this is my servant Seras. While you are here, she will also be your servant."

Integral nodded as Seras continued to clear the table. "I want to know something, Alucard," she began, "Why am I here?"

"Quick to get to the point, aren't you?" laughed Alucard. "You are here because I desire company."

Integral arched an eyebrow. "There has to be more to it than that," she said.

"I'm afraid that is all I'm willing to tell you," he said, leaning back in his chair. "Seras, if you could show Miss Integral to her room and help her prepare for bed? It is getting rather late and she must be tired after her journey here."

Seras, who had finished cleaning the table and had been standing in a corner awaiting orders, let out a quiet "Yes, Master," and led Intgral out of the dining hall. When they got to Integral's room, Seras immediately headed for the wardrobe and began to look through it.

"Seras," said Integral as she took a seat on the edge of the bed, "Can you tell me why I am here?"

"Well," said Seras hesitantly as she continued to look through the wardrobe, "Master is… looking for someone. Neither of us are exactly normal, and he is looking for someone who can make us normal again."

"What do you mean, you are not normal? You look perfectly normal to me."

"Master's red eyes. Mine will turn red eventually, too. We also have these fangs," she said, showing her teeth to Integral, "and a desire for… unconventional food sources."

Integral blinked. "While that is a bit odd, what keeps you from participating in proper society?"

"I might seem normal, but Master is something different entirely. I've only been this way for a year while it's been more than a century for him. He looks young, yes? But he's ancient. We don't age. We hunger for blood. Miss Integral, we are monsters."


	4. Chapter 4

Short chapter because yours truly needs some sleep.

[Insert "I don't own..." disclaimer here.]

Happy reading!

* * *

"That would explain my father's notion that he met the devil," mused Integral.

"You're not at all bothered?" asked Seras, shocked.

"Only slightly," said Integral with a shrug. "I've read stranger."

"Miss Integral, you are very strange," said Seras as she pulled out a particularly frilly nightie.

"Not that one," said Integral as soon as she saw the nightie. "Do you have any with less frills?"

Seras rummaged in the wardrobe for a bit before pulling out a nightgown with less frills but some embroidery. "How about this one?"

Integral eyed the nightie critically. "It will do," she sighed. She would have preferred just a plain cotton nightgown, but if that was the best Seras could find, it would do.

"Right," said Seras as she began to help Integral out of her traveling clothes and into the nightgown. "Would you like a bath in the morning?" she asked.

"That would be nice," said Integral.

"Very well," said Seras as she finished helping Integral into the nightgown. "I'll have one prepared when you awake. Good night, Miss Integral."

"Good night, Seras," said Integral with a yawn as she settled into her bed.

Meanwhile, Alucard sat in the library, deep in thought. Integral seemed promising thus far. She was prettier than he'd expected. She was educated, which was a plus. He was quite fond of what he had managed to glimpse of her personality, as well.

But what, exactly, would he do with her? Seras was unable to break the spell, for she had ended up as one of his kind. He had eaten two others and one had died of old age. Would he keep her until she too died of old age? Would he eventually grow tired of her and eat her? Or would he change her into one of his kind as he had done Seras? None of his approaches thus far had worked. Perhaps it was time for a new one, if he was able to devise one.

"Master?" said Seras as she entered the darkened library. "Miss Integral is asleep."

"Very good," said Alucard.

"Master, are you going to eat her?"

Alucard chuckled. "No. Not yet, anyway. Come, Seras. It is time to hunt," he said as he stood.

"Do I have to?" groaned Seras.

"Yes," said Alucard in an almost fatherly tone. "Now come."

With that, the two monsters were gone in a flurry of mist.

Morning came and Integral was awakened by the sunlight streaming into her room. She yawned and looked around. As Seras had promised, a bath was ready and waiting for her and there was a note on the bedside table.

_Integral,  
You are free to wander and the library is open. Unfortunately, Seras and I sleep during the daylight, so you will have to prepare your own breakfast and midday meal. Supplies are in the kitchen.  
-Alucard_

Slipping out of her nightgown, Integral left it on the bed and made her way to where the bath sat. The water was still warm and soap and a washing cloth had been set out, as well as a towel. As soon as Integral was in the bath, she began to scrub the dirt and grime of travel off of herself. By the time she was finished, the water had cooled and her fingers and toes resembled prunes.

Integral stepped out of the tub and pulled on the towel, then headed for the wardrobe. She hoped it contained better choices in daywear than it did sleepwear.

After a bit of poking around, she found something she deemed acceptable – a sapphire blue dress with limited frills and embroidery. It seemed she couldn't find anything entirely without added decoration; one of the dresses she had found even had gemstones sewn onto it, something she found to be rather outrageous.

Once she had pulled on the dress and a pair of slippers, for she had no plans to leave the castle, she headed to the library. She had started a book the day before and wanted to finish it before her midday meal. She had missed breakfast during her bath and wasn't particularly hungry after the feast the night before anyway.


End file.
